Happy New Year

The Green Room would like to wish everyone a safe and happy new year!

Hillary Picks Up 10th Senator

Image courtesy of Hillary Hub

Good news for the Hillary Clinton campaign as they prepare for the Iowa caucus. The campaign announced today the endorsement of Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington. Cantwell's endorsement makes Hillary's list of senate endorsements grow to 10. Senator Barack Obama has 2 senate endorsements while Bill Richardson and Senator Joe Biden each have one. John Edwards and Chris Dodd have none.

End of Year Box Office

2007 ends with National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets leading the box office. The new film Alien vs. Predator: Requiem tanked at the box office not even breaking the top 5. Serves the right for releasing it on Christmas. Meanwhile, well received Juno performed well and Sweeney Todd dropped to number 9.

Here's a rundown:

1. National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets - $35.6 million
2. Alvin and the Chipmunks - $30 million
3. I Am Legend - $27.5 million
4. Charlie Wilson's War - $11.7 million
5. Juno - $10.3 million

*Red indicates new to theaters

2007 Deadliest Year for Iraq (So Far)

While the second half of 2007 saw a dramatic drop in violence in Iraq, 2007 has been the deadliest year for the United States military since the invasion in 2003. 2007 saw the death of 899 U.S. troops. At least 3,902 U.S. troops have died since the start of this (pointless) war.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22451069/

Golden Globes Still On

Despite the Writer's Guild of America announcing that they will picket at the Golden Globes Ceremony, NBC has announced that the ceremony will go on as scheduled.

But will the actors show up? Probably not.

Pollspot: Republican National

Sen. John McCain leads a national Rasmussen tracking poll for the Republican presidential nomination. However, his lead of 17% is not statistically significant since his rivals are all within the poll's margin of error. Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee are a point behind at 16% and Rudy Giuliani is two points back at 15%. Slightly off the pace, but still within five points of McCain, is Fred Thompson at 12%. This would make it a 5-way tie.

Jimmy Fallon Weds

Image courtesy of Ask Men

Lots of celebrity weddings recently! Former Saturday Night Live cast member Jimmy Fallon married his producing partner Nancy Juvonen yesterday. Congratulations!

Pollspot: New Hamsphire Tightens

According to Political Wire, "A new American Research Group poll in New Hampshire finds the Democratic presidential race tightening and the Republican race deadlocked.

Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton leads with 31% followed by Sen. Barack Obama at 27% and John Edwards at 21%. The poll has a margin of error of 4 points.

Key finding: Clinton has dropped 7 points in two weeks while Edwards has gained 6 points and Obama has gained 3 points. Undeclared voters provide positive playback for Edwards based on his television advertising running in New Hampshire and this is reflected in the ballot results. Edwards now leads Obama among undeclared voters 38% to 23%.

In the Republican race, Mitt Romney and Sen. John McCain remain tied at 30%, followed by Mike Huckabee at 11%, Rudy Giuliani at 9% and Rep. Ron Paul at 7%.

Pollspot: 4 Days To Iowa

According to Political Wire, a new McClatchy-MSNBC poll in Iowa shows a statistical dead heat in the Democratic presidential race and a big shift in the Republican race. John Edwards leads with 24%, followed by Sen. Hillary Clinton with 23% and Sen. Barack Obama with 22%. Edwards has the momentum since the last poll in early December gaining 3 points, while Clinton lost 4 points and Obama lost 3 points.

Among Republicans, Mitt Romney has regained the lead as Mike Huckabee "has lost momentum and support, even among evangelical Christians who had propelled him into the top spot just weeks ago." Romney now leads with 27%, followed by Huckabee at 23%, Fred Thompson at 14%, and Sen. John McCain at 13%. Huckabee is down 8 points since earlier this month, while Romney is up 7 points.

The Green Room is a big supporter of Senator Hillary Clinton and encourages her Iowan supporters to go out and caucus for her this Thursday, January 3rd.

Pollspot: Zogby Iowa

A Reuters/C-Span/Zogby tracking poll released today shows that on the Democratic side, there is a three-way statistical tie with Sen. Hillary Clinton leading with 30.7% support, followed by Sen. Barack Obama at 26.8% and John Edwards at 24.2%. The poll's margin of error is 3.3%.

On the Republican side, there is also a tie for first place. Mike Huckabee leads with 27.7%, followed by Mitt Romney at 26.6%, Sen. John McCain at 10.9%, Fred Thompson at 7.8% and Rudy Giuliani at 7.3%. The poll's margin of error is 3.4%.

Courtesy of Political Wire.

The Iowa Caucus will be held Thursday.

Countdown to Iowa: 4 days

Longer post forthcoming, but an interesting article I came upon about Obama and his foreign policy experience, or rather, lack thereof.

From the Washington Post

Pollspot: The Poll With Different Results

According to Political Wire, A new American Research Group poll in Iowa continues to be an outlier among the various public surveys that have shown a statistical tie in the Democratic race for president.

On the Democratic side, the poll finds Sen. Hillary Clinton leads with 31%, followed by John Edwards and Barack Obama at 24% each.

On the Republican side, Mitt Romney leads with 32% support, followed by Mike Huckabee at 23%, and Sen. John McCain at 11%.

Clinton & Obama Buy Major Ad Time

With the Iowa Caucus less than a week away, the Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama campaigns are buying major ad time in the state. ABC News "has learned that Sen. Barack Obama's campaign is trying to buy advertising time on the night before the caucuses for a live political commercial, to air statewide." Meanwhile, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign "announced on Thursday that she would buy a two minute block of time on every 6pm newscast in the state."

No Charges for Brandy

The L.A. City Attorney has decided not to file charges against R&B singer Brandy Norwood over the fatal car accident she was in last year.

Confusion Surrounding Bhutto's Death

Image courtesy of Harry Walker

Controversy continues to build around the assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Today, Pakistan's Interior Ministry says that Bhutto was killed when she fractured her skull when she hit her head on her car's sunroof after a bomb exploded. Yesterday, the Ministry said she was killed due to shots from the bomber before changing their story and saying Bhutto was killed due to a shrapnel injury from the bomb. The story keeps changing and Pakistani President Musharraf's administration is losing its already low credibility. Bhutto went on record before her death stating that if she were to be assassinated that Musharraf would be to blame. Also noteworthy is the lack of security surrounding Bhutto at the time of her death. Meanwhile, Al-Qaeda may also have had some involvement in her death. For more on this story, click here.

Pollspot: No Budge in Iowa

Another poll still shows an extremely close race in Iowa.

A new Research 2000 poll in Iowa shows the Democratic presidential race is a virtual three-way tie, with John Edwards rising to tie Sen. Barack Obama for the lead and Sen. Hillary Clinton just one point behind. Edwards and Obama each get 29% support, with Clinton behind with 28%.

On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee remains in the lead with a 7-point edge over Mitt Romney, 34% to 27%. Fred Thompson is a distant third with 11%, followed by a three-way tie for fourth between Rudy Giuliani, John McCain and Ron Paul, with 8% each.

Key finding: "There is plenty of room for shifts in the final days before the Jan. 3 caucuses, with 19 percent of Democrats and 31 percent of Republicans saying they are likely or very likely to change their minds."

Courtesy of Political Wire

Divorce for Penn

Image courtesy of BBC

Academy Award winner Sean Penn and his wife of 11 years, actress Robin Wright, are divorcing. Penn was previously married to Madonna.

Wedding Bells for Fergie

Image courtesy of MSNBC

Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson of the Black Eyed Peas and actor Josh Duhamel are engaged.

iTunes: The New Blockbuster

Apple and Fox will sign a deal that will allow films to be rented on iTunes. iTunes currently offers a selection of movies for sale at $9.99 in addition to tv show episodes costing $1.99. The rental service is expected to cost between $2 and $5. Films rented will be available for a 24-hour period. The service will begin early next year. For more on the story, click here.

Pollspot: Anyone's Game

These polls are seriously all over the place. Political Wire brings to our attention two more polls today inr egards to Iowa and New Hampshire.

Iowa:

A new Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll in Iowa finds a three way statistical tie among likely caucus goers with Sen. Hillary Clinton at 31%, John Edwards at 25% and Sen. Barack Obama at 22%.

Among likely Republican caucus goers, Mike Huckabee leads with 36%, followed by Mitt Romney at 28%, Fred Thompson at 10%, Sen. John McCain at 8%, and Rudy Giuliani at 8%.

New Hampshire:

A new Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll in New Hampshire finds Sen. Barack Obama leading likely primary voters with 32%, Sen. Hillary Clinton at 30%, and John Edwards at 20%.

Among likely Republican primary voters, Mitt Romney leads with 34%, followed by Sen. John McCain at 20%, Rudy Giuliani at 17%, and Mike Huckabee at 12%.

Pollspot: Deadlocked Iowa

Political Wire is reporting on a new Strategic Vision (R) poll from Iowa that shows both the Republican and Democratic presidential races essentially tied.

For Democrats, it's Obama at 30%, Clinton at 29% and Edwards at 28%.

For Republicans, it's Huckabee at 29%, Romney at 27%, Thompson at 15%; and McCain at 14%.

The poll, which has a 4.5% margin of error, was taken over the last two days.

Courtesy of Political Wire

Jessica Alba Engaged

Actress Jessica Alba and her boyfriend Cash Warren are engaged. This has been confirmed by Alba's publicist. Jessica Alba announced she was pregnant earlier this month.

Mischa Barton Arrested

Image courtesy of Reuters

Former The OC star Mischa Barton was arrested this morning for DUI.

Turmoil in Pakistan

Benazir Bhutto

1953-2007

Major news today out of Pakistan with the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. A suicide bomber shot Bhutto and then blew himself up killing himself and 22 others. It's unclear whether Bhutto died from the shot or from the blast. Bhutto was the first female prime minister of the nation and led Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 1996. After living in exile, Bhutto returned to Pakistan this past October after President Musharraf signed an amnesty deal. While she had great support in the nation, she also faced a very strong and violent opposition. For more on this developing story, please visit CNN.

Movie Trailer: The Other Boleyn Girl

Image courtesy of IMDB

Click here to see the trailer for The Other Boleyn Girl starring Eric Bana, Natalie Portman, and Scarlett Johansson. The film hits theaters this coming February.

Merry Christmas

The Green Room would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Pollspot: Who Knows Anymore

Things really do change in Iowa every day. I hope this poll is correct!

A new American Research Group poll in Iowa shows Sen. Hillary Clinton expanding her lead in the last week. Clinton now leads with 34%, followed by John Edwards at 20%, and Sen. Barack Obama at 19%.

In the GOP race, Mike Huckabee leads at 23%, trailed by Mitt Romney at 21%, Sen. John McCain at 17%, Rudy Giuliani at 14% and Rep. Ron Paul at 10%.

Courtesy of Political Wire

Katherine Heigl Ties the Knot

Image courtesy of All Posters

Grey's Anatomy and Knocked Up star Katherine Heigl married boyfriend Josh Kelley this past weekend. Her Grey's co-stars were in attendance. Heigl will next be seen on the big screen in 27 Dresses alongside James Marsden. Congratulations to the couple.

Box Office Report

Nicholas Cage rules the box office leading into Christmas. National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets, one of five new movies, was able to become the top grossing film this past weekend. Appearances by Johnny Depp, Will Smith, Julia Roberts, and Tom Hanks helped the weekend become a big earner for Hollywood.

Here is an estimated rundown:

1. National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets - $45.5 million
2. I Am Legend - $34.3 million
3. Alvin and the Chipmunks - $29 million
4. Charlie Wilson's War - $9.6 million
5. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - $9.3 million

*Red indicates movie new to theaters.

Sweeney Todd

Image courtesy of Broadway World

The Green Room highly recommends Tim Burton's new film, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, starring Johnny Depp. Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen also star in the Stephen Sondheim penned movie musical. The movie opened to overwhelmingly positive reviews.

Pollspot: Boston Globe Shows Obama Edge

Image courtesy of The Boston Globe

A new Boston Globe poll released today shows Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton virtually tied in New Hampshire. Obama leads Clinton 30 - 28%. However that is within the polls margin of error of +/- 5 points. On the Republican side, John McCain also appears to be closing in and tying former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. It could be all over for Romney if he loses Iowa to Mike Huckabee and New Hamsphire to John McCain.

Pollspot: Obama Catches Hillary

According to Political Wire, a new USA Today/Gallup poll of New Hampshire voters shows Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama tied at 32%, with John Edwards at 18%.On the Republican side, Mitt Romney leads John McCain, 34% to 27%."Effectively tied for third place are former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, at 11%, and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and Texas Rep. Ron Paul, each at 9%."

Tom Tancredo Drops Out

Republican presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo has dropped out of the presidential race.

Good riddance!

The Secret Life of Bees

ComingSoon is reporting that Jennifer Hudson, Queen Latifah, and Sophie Okonedo have signed on to star in The Secret Life of Bees, based on the novel by Sue Monk Kidd. Also, in final negotiations to star in the film are Alicia Keys and Dakota Fanning.

The film is set in 1964 South Carlolina and centers on Lily Owens (Dakota Fanning), who escapes her lonely life and problematic relationship with her father by running away with her only friend (Jennifer Hudson) to a town that holds the secrets to her mother's past. There she is taken in by an eccentric trio of beekeeping sisters (Keys, Latifah, Okonedo).

Pollspot: Getting Down to the Wire

The Iowa Caucus is fast approaching and it continues to look like a 3-way tie between Obama, Clinton, and Edwards for the Democrats. Take a look at some polls courtesy of Politcial Wire:

American Research Group:

The American Research Group released new polls from Iowa and New Hampshire, but both show results very different than almost every other recently published poll.

Democrats:
In Iowa, Sen. Hillary Clinton leads among Democrats with 29% followed closely by Sen. Barack Obama with 25% and John Edwards with 18%. Obama has the softest support in Iowa among Democrats, with 25% of his supporters say they might change their minds.

In New Hampshire, Clinton leads with 38%, followed by Obama at 24%, and Edwards at 15%.

Republicans:
In Iowa, Mike Huckabee leads with 28%, followed by John McCain at 20%, Mitt Romney at 17%, and Rudy Giuliani at 13%. Huckabee's support in Iowa is the softest among Republicans, with 62% of his supporters saying they might change their minds.

In New Hampshire, Romney and McCain are tied at 26% each.

Strategic Vision:

A new Strategic Vision poll in Iowa that also shows the Democratic presidential race in a statistical tie. Sen. Barack Obama leads with 30%, followed by John Edwards and Sen. Hillary Clinton tied at 27%.For Republicans, Mike Huckabee leads with 31%, followed by Mitt Romney at 25%, Fred Thompson at 16%, Sen. John McCain at 8%, Rudy Giuliani at 6%.

CNN:

A new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows the Democratic race for president in a statistical tie. Sen. Hillary Clinton leads with 30%, followed by Sen. Barack Obama at 28% and John Edwards at 26% -- all within the poll's margin of error of four points.

On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee leads with 33%, followed by Mitt Romney at 25%, and Rudy Giuliani at 11%.

Britney's Sister Expecting

Image courtesy of Evil Beet Gossip

Jamie Lynn Spears, the 16-year-old younger sister of Britney Spears, has announced that she is expecting her first child.

WGA & the Golden Globes

The Writer's Guild of America has announced that they will be picketing outside the Golden Globes ceremony next month. This will lead to quite a different ceremony and many wonder if any actors will show up and cross the picket lines to attend the ceremony. The WGA strike is now in its 7th week.

Pollspot: Iowa, NH, and National

While Senator Clinton has lost some of her power since I've been away in Europe, I still believe that she can and will win the Democratic Party's nomination. More importantly, I still believe in her. Here are some polls courtesy of Political Wire:

Iowa:

The latest Washington Post/ABC News poll shows Sen. Barack Obama leading the Democratic field with 33%, followed by Sen. Hillary Clinton at 29%, Edwards at 20% and Gov. Bill Richardson at 8%.

Key finding: "Each of the leading contenders appears to enjoy distinct advantages. More of Obama's backers said they are certain to participate than did those who have gotten behind Clinton. But Clinton's supporters are the most committed and enthusiastic, and Edwards counts among his supporters experienced caucus attendees who are more likely to turn out again."

New Hampshire:

A new CNN/WMUR poll shows Sen. Hillary Clinton regaining her lead in New Hampshire -- thanks to a boost in support from older Democratic voters. Clinton leads with 38%, followed by Sen. Barack Obama with 26% and John Edwards at 14%.

In the Republican race, Mitt Romney is still out in front with 34%, followed by Sen. John McCain at 22% and Rudy Giuliani at 16%.

National:

A new Reuters/Zogby national poll shows Mike Huckabee surging into a virtual tie with Rudy Giuliani in the Republican presidential race. Huckabee is now just one point behind Giuliani, 23% to 22%.

Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton's national edge also shrunk, though she's still eight points ahead of Sen. Barack Obama, 40% to 32%.

Journeys with John: Athens

November 30th - December 2nd, 2007

This concludes the Journeys with John series. I return to the United States this week.

Journeys with John: Rome

Journeys with John: Venice

November 20-21, 2007